Aunt Sophie wins Santa Clara

SAN MATEO, Calif. - Aunt Sophie ($22.20) burst through a small hole between rivals in the stretch then pulled away to score a 1 3/4 victory in the $61,900 Santa Clara Handicap at Bay Meadows on Saturday.

Aunt Sophie sat closer to the pace than usual in the one-mile race and still had plenty left in the stretch as she beat stablemates Lacie Girl and Lost At Sea, who lost a head bob for second at the wire. Winning time over a track labeled wet fast was 1:34.74.

"They just told me to try not to stay too far behind," said jockey Roberto Gonzalez, who recorded his sixth victory in the past 10 stakes run in Northern California. "I was really surprised I was only about three lengths behind because I wasn't pushing her at all."

Gonzalez needed a bit of luck in the lane and got it as pacesetter Marty's Zee began to fade. Lost At Sea was moving along the rail, and Gonzalez shot between Lost At Sea and Marty's Zee.

"There was just enough room to get in between them, and the filly really helped me out. She showed guts to go through," Gonzalez said. "Once she got through, she re-broke again."

Aunt Sophie earned $33,550 for the victory to lift her career total to $155,205 with her sixth victory in 26 starts.